AFRICA | A young man from Ethiopia, Kirubel Salomon, has made his mother’s lifelong sacrifice worthwhile by fulfilling her dream of becoming an airline pilot.
His mother, Minalu Mergiya, worked as a domestic worker in Lebanon for 25 years to fund her sons’ education and give them a better future. To reward his mother, Salomon decided to surprise her.
On her final journey back home to Ethiopia after decades of hard work abroad, Mergiya boarded a flight from Beirut to Addis Ababa, unaware that her own son would be flying the plane.
As she entered the aircraft, Salomon appeared from behind the cockpit curtain holding a bouquet to surprise her.
Overcome with emotion, Mergiya burst into tears as she embraced the son she had not seen for over four years. The heartwarming reunion, captured on video, quickly went viral and touched millions worldwide.
Salomon's Story and How He Did It
Salomon, who earned a bachelor’s degree in Hydraulic Engineering from Aksum University, later proceeded to the Ethiopian Airlines Aviation Academy, where he trained as an Aeronautical Engineer and achieved his lifelong dream of flying.
He described the touching moment with his mother as a way to express gratitude for her years of sacrifice.
“I realized at a very young age that my mother went to Lebanon to provide for me. This had an undeniable impact on my determination to succeed. One day, she told me her dream was to see me become a pilot — this is my way of making that dream come true,” he said.
For Mergiya, the moment was both emotional and fulfilling. “When I saw my son standing by the cockpit, I ran up to hug him. It’s so beautiful to see your child make it in life,” she said.
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Mergiya’s journey began in the late 1990s when, at just 21, she left Ethiopia with a secretarial diploma and two young sons.
Unable to find work in Addis Ababa, she accepted a job in Lebanon as a housemaid. And began as a temporary decision, turned into a 25-year career.
She spent wo years with one family, and over 20 years with the Italian-Lebanese Spagnolo family in Kornet al-Hamra. Over time, they became her second family, supporting her through the 2006 war, Lebanon’s economic crisis, and the 2020 Beirut port explosion.
Back in Ethiopia, her sons were raised by their grandmother until her passing in 2015. Despite the distance, Mergiya remained actively involved in their lives, ensuring they received the education she never had.
“Even thousands of miles away, our mother was always encouraging us. We had to succeed professionally; we needed to do,” Salomon said. “
Her hard work paid off, Salomon’s younger brother earned a degree in Computer Science and now works in Croatia as a sports coach and model. Both sons have fulfilled the dreams their mother once held for herself.
Now reunited with her family, Mergiya says she is grateful and content, though Lebanon will always hold a special place in her heart. “I loved the country and the family I worked for,” she said. “They became like my own children.”
As for Salomon, he dreams of showing his mother the world she helped him reach. “I know she dreams of traveling to France, Italy, and Brazil,” he said with a smile. Though she has returned home, his promise remains, to let her finally live the dreams she once set aside for him.
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